I've been talking plenty about the Urban Decay collaboration with Gwen Stefani lately. The brand has released limited edition eyeshadow and blush palettes, lip pencils, brow powder duo and today I'm talking about the lipsticks. The Urban Decay X Gwen Stefani Lipsticks* are 6 shades designed and inspired by the famed No Doubt songstress in shades she felt represented her signature style (which is naturally why there are so many bold reds). I got my hands on 4 of the lipsticks to give you all some reviews and swatches.
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| Urban Decay Gwen Stefani Lipsticks in 714, Rock Steady, Spiderweb and Ex-Girlfriend |
Like the other products in the Gwen Stefani collection, the lipsticks have a very art deco vibe to them with bold black and gold packaging. The tube itself is plastic, but the price point is lower than the Revolution Lipstick range from Urban Decay, so I am guessing that is where the price break comes in, because the formula of these spares nothing.
Out of the 4 shades I got (714, Rock Steady, Spiderweb and Ex-Girlfriend) three are incredibly opaque and pigmented red tones, and Ex-Girlfriend is a sheer neutral that is more like a tinted lip balm than lipstick in my opinion. The shade 714 is what I would consider a 'true' red, and had more slip to it applying than the other two red based shades. Spiderweb is more of a blue based red, and incredibly opaque in pigment with a slightly stiffer feel going on and a matte finish. The same could be said about Rock Steady, which is also red with a slight wine undertone and also has a slightly stiffer matte texture. Both of these shades (Rock Steady and Spiderweb) we comfortable on the lips, regardless of the matte finish and didn't bleed or move around.
Now I am going to be really honest here... I am not a red lipstick person. I just never find the right occasion in my life where red lipstick fits my mood/style/comfort level. I would say that these reds are really nice to wear however, with 714 easily applying without lipliner, and Spiderweb really being a dead ringer for the red lipstick I remember Gwen iconically rocking in the No Doubt videos of the 90s. The sheer balmy nature of Ex-Girlfriend is way more my style, but I should mention there is really nothing unique about the shade nor finish that makes it stand out in the sea of neutral lipsticks, unless of course you are collecting based on the limited edition nature of the collection. There are two more shades in the range that I didn't get: Firebird, a reddened Fuschia, and Wonderland, a pinker red.
I think if you are a red lipstick lover, the Urban Decay Gwen Stefani Lipsticks are definitely not a collection to pass up. The packaging is fun, and the quality of these lipsticks are outstanding. Who knows, maybe my time with red lipstick is still yet to come...
